


Breakfast and Stationery Notes

by katierosefun



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: F/M, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Forehead Kisses, Mild Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-18
Updated: 2016-01-18
Packaged: 2018-05-14 18:46:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,078
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5754247
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/katierosefun/pseuds/katierosefun
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“I left you a note!” </p><p>Coulson frowned. “A note?” he asked, bewildered. “I didn’t see a note.” </p><p>“I wrote it down! On the motel’s stationery! I slid it under your door…” Daisy pushed past Coulson. She swung open his room’s door and looked down at the ground. At first, she, too, couldn’t find any trace of the stationery…</p><p>And then Daisy ducked to the ground. She looked under Coulson’s bed and there, sitting with the dust balls, she found a single sheet of paper lying on the ground. Puffing out an exasperated sigh, Daisy reached and snatched up the stationery. </p><p>She walked back to Coulson and held it to his face. </p><p>“This note,” she said pointedly. </p><p>(In which Daisy goes out to get breakfast on a mission, and when he can’t find her, Coulson’s frantic.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Breakfast and Stationery Notes

**_Breakfast and Stationery Notes_ **

 

 

Daisy woke up first – which was definitely unusual to begin with. She wasn’t – as anyone would know – a morning person. Whenever she had the chance, she’d sleep in and let the day roll by over her head without so much a second blink.

Only today, she couldn’t afford to sleep in.

Mostly because she was hungry, and the stupid mini-fridge in the motel room didn’t have _any food whatsoever._

Daisy let out a soft groaning sound of defeat, pressing her face back into the pillow. She _knew_ she should have grabbed something the night before – and there had been a diner literally _three blocks away_ , but she had been _so tired_ last night. And her procrastination was well-deserved, too, especially since she had been working furiously and frantically in the past few weeks. It had been too long since Daisy had kicked back, even if it was over something as simple as breakfast.

Daisy’s stomach growled.

“Fine, fine,” she muttered, throwing off the stiff blankets. “Lesson learned, got it? No more procrastinating from here on out.” She shoved her feet into her shoes, threw on her jacket, and did the best she could to make herself look presentable. (Ah, the benefits of having short hair – she didn’t have to try too hard to straighten it out.)

Daisy cast another look around the motel room. Her eyes fell on her backpack, which was sitting on the dingy, rickety chair in the corner. She hesitated – she could always leave it here, but if there was one thing being a field agent had taught her, it was to always keep her walls up. Even if she was just stepping out for a few minutes.

“Better safe than sorry,” she murmured, and in one swoop of the arm, her backpack was strapped over her shoulders and she was ready to go.

There was nothing but brisk, winter air to greet Daisy once she stepped out. Up in Toronto, it was usually chilly – and since it was earlier in the morning, it was definitely colder than usual. Daisy buried herself a little deeper into her jacket, and after a few seconds of hopping around from foot to foot, she managed to warm herself up a bit.

Daisy looked down the doors of the other motel rooms. It was just Coulson and her – he was in the room next door. She considered walking over to his room to tell him that she was heading out to grab some food, but decided against it. She wouldn’t take too long and besides, Coulson needed to sleep. He was beginning to look more and more like a raccoon in the last couple of days. (Not that she would ever tell him that. Or maybe she would, just for kicks.)

Daisy paced outside of Coulson’s door, tapping her fingers lightly against her chin. She didn’t want to leave without warning. What would happen if he woke up, only to find that she wasn’t in her room? The last thing Daisy needed was a panicky search party after her just because she went out to get breakfast.

“Motel stationery,” Daisy suddenly said, and without another moment of hesitation, she dove back into her room. It took her some time to rummage around her room, but eventually, she found the small pad of paper that all motels seemed to offer. Ripping off a sheet of the stationery, Daisy scrawled down the quickest, most direct message she could think of –

 _AC,_ (Daisy ended up crossing that out. Multiple times. She hadn’t called him that for months now. Maybe a year, even.)

 _Went out to get food. I’ll be back soon, so don’t freak._ (She underlined _don’t freak._ Multiple times.)

 _Yours_ ( _nope,_ Daisy thought furiously, crossing that out), _laters_ ( _you’re not ten years old_ ), _see ya_ ( _so mature, really_ ) –

Letting out an annoyed sigh, Daisy settled for writing her initials at the bottom of the page. With that, she ran back out of her motel room and scooted it halfway under Coulson’s door.

“Right,” Daisy said, clapping her hands together, “food. Food’s good.”

\--

Coulson woke up in cold sweat.

It was always the same thing over and over and over again – some crazy alien was blowing something up again, Ward had _somehow_ gotten to the base, he was getting one of his other limbs cut off…

On instinct, Coulson looked down at his gloved hand. He cast it an almost distasteful look. It wasn’t that he wasn’t grateful for the replacement – he knew that he was much more fortunate than others with lost limbs, but _this_ still felt unnatural. And the fact that this was his second glove only seemed to prove Coulson’s uneasiness towards his new situation. Not that this even _counted_ as a new situation – he’d had his hand gone for a few months now, but…

Coulson tore his eyes away from the glove. He wouldn’t focus on that now. He needed to get back to work first. He was with Skye (not Skye – _Daisy,_ dammit!)  on another Inhuman scouting trip. There had been rumors about a little girl who had been apparently showing up on security cameras and then disappearing in the next. (“Okay, but teleportation is so _cool_ ,” Daisy had said when she showed Coulson the file. “I mean…” She shot Coulson a guilty look. “ _Gordon_ using teleportation wasn’t really cool, but the difference between the two of these guys is that this girl might not end up being a blind follower of my mom. So. Or it could be invisibility. Invisibility’s pretty neat, too.”)

Daisy.

Coulson should probably wake her up, if she wasn’t awake already.

After rolling stiffly out of bed, Coulson shuffled for the door. He blinked the sleep out of his eyes as he grabbed his coat – put on his shoes – and heard his stomach growl. He’d have to grab breakfast with Daisy once they got out of the motel. He was pretty sure he saw a nice-looking diner just a few blocks away from here. (And he needed coffee. Serving good coffee was an automatic must for all diners.)

Coulson opened the door. He was greeted with a gust of wind and the bright morning sun, along with the mostly-empty parking lot set out before him. There was a couple sitting against a blue car, holding hands and giggling loudly over Styrofoam cups. Coulson only lingered on the sight briefly before walking down to the door next to his.

“Skye?” he called, knocking on it lightly. “Are you up?”

Coulson waited patiently for an answer. When none came, he called again (a little louder this time), “Skye? I mean – wait, not Skye – _Daisy,_ dammit, sorry – Daisy, are you awake?” He knocked again, this time a bit harder and with a little more urgency. “Hello?”

Still no answer.

Coulson felt the beginnings of unease in the pit of his stomach. He frowned, trying to brush the feelings aside. There could be a perfectly good reason as to why Daisy wasn’t answering the door right away. She really _could_ still be asleep. Or she could be taking a shower. Or she could be listening to something too loud.

 _Or she could have been kidnapped,_ a voice told Coulson instantly. _Or she could have been shot in the stomach, completely unable to call for help._

Coulson’s insides went cold. He took a small step away from the door, trying to even out his breathing. Daisy was fine. She was _fine._ There was a good reason why she wasn’t answering…there had to be. There _had_ to be.

 _Think about every mission gone wrong,_ the same voice from before piped up. _Think about every agent lost. Think about all of those mysterious cases when a partner was strangled to death right next door. Or maybe the partner was stabbed to death? That could have happened. Maybe she’s hurt. Maybe she’s gone. Maybe she’s –_

Coulson’s hand shot out. He squeezed the handle – and with a creaking of metal, it all but crushed under Coulson’s grip. He knew that he would have some explaining to do later, but right now, it didn’t matter. He swung the door open, and without even a moment of hesitation, he stepped into the motel room.

“Daisy?” he called again. His eyes frantically swept the small bedroom.

Nothing. No one.

Panic rushed over Coulson like a tidal wave. He staggered out of the room, his head spinning and his heart beating frantically in his chest. If Daisy wasn’t here, where could she be? Was it possible she went out on the scouting mission by herself? That could be something that she would do, but why now? And without a warning?

Coulson rubbed the back of his neck. Daisy was capable of fighting off on her own – he was very aware of that. And yet…the idea of her being kidnapped or hurt under _his_ watch made everything feel worse. Coulson glanced back down at the parking lot, as though he could find the answer there. If there had been kidnappers, how long ago would it have been? Had Daisy disappeared this morning? Or was she gone since last night?

“Calm down,” Coulson muttered to himself, pacing back and forth. “Calm down. She’ll be fine. You just have to find her. Where would she go right now? Where would she be?”

\--

“And you said on the go?”

“Yup!” Daisy pushed the crumpled-looking bills forward, which the employee took without a second glance. Chewing loudly on her piece of gum, the employee looked back at Daisy and said, “So, four large pancakes, two large hashbrowns, two servings of scrambled eggs, one gingerbread coffee, and one espresso.”

“Correct.”

“Alright,” the employee replied, handing the large bag over. “Have a nice day!”

“You too!” Daisy picked up the large plastic bag and took the small tray of drinks in her other hand. She didn’t have time to put on any java jackets – she had already taken way too long in the diner and besides, it was fairly cool outside. That would get rid of some of the steam in the drinks.

Daisy pushed herself out of the diner, only barely missing crashing into a large family of six – and doing her best not to trip over anything, she made her way back to the motel. She was feeling cheerful now that she had woken up a little from her walk to the diner. There was a slight possibility that she had ordered a little too much for breakfast, but that didn’t matter – who could say no to hashbrowns? Or pancakes? Or _breakfast_?

 As Daisy walked back to the motel, she took note of the sun in the sky. She couldn’t sneak a look at her phone right now, but she had the feeling that it was probably a little after nine in the morning. Maybe a quarter to ten? The fact that Daisy was able to get away with grabbing breakfast in these hours on this particular mission was something very new – and also very lax of her, though she brushed that thought aside. Everything for now would be simple – she was hungry, Coulson would be hungry, and she was bringing breakfast from a well-to-do diner. That was all there was for now. Other problems about her sensibility would be addressed later.

The motel came into view. From her position, Daisy could see a familiar figure walking back and forth outside her room. Daisy narrowed her eyes, feeling the first uneven beats of her heart at the strange sight – but then, a small smile took over her face. It was only Coulson, looking just a bit rumpled from the usual morning wake-up. (Maybe he had just gotten out of bed? Perfect timing, really.)

Daisy made her way across the parking lot. Coulson peered down from above – and Daisy watched as his expression went from tight with worry ( _why was he worried?_ Daisy wondered, puzzled) to slack with relief. Daisy lifted the bag in her hand like a white flag.

“Hey!” she called up from the bottom of the stairs. “I got breakfast!” She started to make her way up, but before she could, Coulson was already running down with an alarmingly fast pace.

“Where were you?” Coulson asked, his eyebrows furrowed together. “I thought you were –”

“I went out to get breakfast,” Daisy replied easily, heading up the steps. She held up the tray. “Hold onto this, will you?” Without waiting for a response, she handed it over to Coulson and walked over to her room. “Do you remember that diner we passed by last night? Turns out that they start up early – and they’ve got this _humongous_ breakfast menu; I was tempted to order everything, but I’m pretty sure that wouldn’t be my smartest move.” She looked down at the door handle.

Or rather, what _used_ to be her door handle.

“I can explain that,” Coulson said from behind.

Daisy whirled around. “You destroyed the _door handle_?” she asked incredulously.

“You weren’t answering the door.”

“I left you a note!”

Coulson frowned. “A note?” he asked, bewildered. “I didn’t see a note.”

“I wrote it down! On the motel’s stationery! I slid it under your door…” Daisy pushed past Coulson. She swung open his room’s door and looked down at the ground. At first, she, too, couldn’t find any trace of the stationery…

And then Daisy ducked to the ground. She looked under Coulson’s bed and there, sitting with the dust balls, she found a single sheet of paper lying on the ground. Puffing out an exasperated sigh, Daisy reached and snatched up the stationery. She walked back to Coulson and held it to his face.

“ _This_ note,” she said pointedly.

At first, Coulson only stared blankly at the sheet of paper. Then, he said, “It was windy when I opened the door. It must have swept the note under the bed.”

“Must have,” Daisy replied bluntly. She placed it on the nightstand and headed out of the room. “Come on. We can eat breakfast inside.” Eating in a motel room without the door handle probably wasn’t the best idea, but Daisy didn’t mind it, and Coulson didn’t seem to care, either. Or at least, he didn’t say anything against it.

Daisy plopped herself down on her bed, while Coulson took the one chair in the room. Daisy wordlessly unwrapped the bag, and after distributing the food, they got to work. Daisy was glad that they were both hungry – otherwise, there would have been room for awkward conversation over what had happened just a few minutes ago.

Not that Daisy found it embarrassing. If anything, she found the whole thing a little sweet, though there _was_ a certain degree of annoyance she felt towards the whole matter – for one, didn’t Coulson know that she could handle herself just fine?

 _But he’s Coulson,_ Daisy reminded herself. _He’s the director. He worries about everyone. He even worries about May and Bobbi, and they’re the toughest on the team._

Then again, May was gone and Bobbi was still in physical therapy, but _still._

“Daisy –”

“Coulson –”

The two broke off abruptly. Daisy pushed aside her plate. “You first,” she said.

“No, you.”

“Fine,” Daisy replied, leaning forward. “You’ve got a little bit of hashbrown on the side of your lip.”

Coulson frowned, reaching for a napkin. He held it up to his mouth, asking, “Here?”

“Nope. Other side.”

As Coulson wiped it off, Daisy continued, “And by the way, I’m not helpless. If I needed help, I would have screamed something. And you would have noticed.” She held up her hands, stretching out her fingers. “Tremors, remember?” She tried to make her voice light, though Coulson didn’t smile. Daisy’s own smile faltered. “Alright, then,” she said, placing her hands on her knees. “What were you going to say?”

“I know you can control your powers, Sk – Daisy,” Coulson caught himself at the warning look Daisy shot him. Out of everyone on the team, Coulson seemed to be the one who was finding it the most difficult to get used to her name. “And I know you’re more than capable of looking after yourself.”

“But…?” Daisy asked. “There’s always something else.”

“There is?”

“Of course there is.”

“Can’t it just end there?”

“No.”

“Why not?”

Daisy wasn’t sure whether to roll her eyes or laugh. Maybe both. “Because then there’s no point in just sitting around and pretending like things are completely okay. Because I _know_ you, Coulson. There’s no point in letting it just end right there.” She crossed her legs. “We’ve got time. What is it?”

There was a small silence. Daisy waited patiently – or at least, as patiently as she could, which, in itself, was a remarkable enough feat. She kept fidgeting – she tried not to, though it was difficult. And, as always, Coulson remained as still as ever.

Then, quieter than a whisper, Coulson replied, “I can’t lose you, too.”

Daisy stopped fidgeting. “You’re not going to lose me.”

“That’s what everyone says.”

Daisy frowned. “But I’m not everyone, Coulson,” she replied, and though her tone was gentle enough, there was a hidden reprimand in her words. “You’re not going to lose me.”

“We lost a lot of good women and men a few months ago.”

“I know.”

“So many people that I had to make a damn list.”

“I know that, too.”

“I don’t want you to join that list.”

“ _Coulson,_ ” Daisy got up from the bed. She made her way to Coulson’s chair, and sitting down on the floor next to it, she repeated, “You’re not going to lose me.” She hesitated for a second before placing her hands over Coulson’s. At first, she held on just for a moment before she felt Coulson give her hand a tight squeeze. “We’re in this together, remember?” Daisy said quietly. “So don’t worry about me.”

“I can’t help it.”

“You can.” Daisy rested her chin on the armrest of the chair. “Repeat it after me – you’re not going to lose me.”

“Daisy –”

“You’re not going to lose me. See?”

“…I’m not going to lose you.”

The corners of Daisy’s lips twitched into a smile. Then, pushing herself up, she leaned forward just enough that Coulson’s and her foreheads were just barely touching. Daisy could hear Coulson’s breath hitch for a moment – and then, Daisy separated briefly to place a small kiss on his forehead.

“Come on,” she said softly. “We’ve got work to do.”

**Author's Note:**

> **This was for the Skoulson RomFest 2k16 event - all of the event's details can be found on johnsonandcoulson.tumblr.com.
> 
> **EDIT - thank you, Persiflage, for mentioning the difference between stationary/stationery. Fixed it!


End file.
